Opposition to New Labour academy schools plan

The government is facing mounting opposition to its proposed neo-liberal assault on comprehensive state education.

A survey last week revealed that over half of secondary school teachers oppose academy schools, which are dominated by private investors.

A further poll this week found that almost two thirds of head teachers, 61 percent, are against plans to intensify competition between schools by getting those at the top of league tables to expand at the expense of the rest.

Just 29 percent of heads polled backed the core of New Labour’s education policy — abolishing local authority control and turning schools into separate business units.

Lecturer on education Terry Wrigley was at the North of England Education Conference where education secretary Ruth Kelly was jeered last week. He says, “This is not normally the kind of audience that will take on a government minister. The fact that they did shows the depth of feeling.

“It’s vital that parents, teachers, schools students and working class people as a whole come together in local meetings and lobbies to campaign on this issue. There is no reason we should compromise with the government.”